social networks/social support – Flashcards

Social network refers to the web of social relationships that surround individuals. Social networks give rise to various social functions: social influence, social control, social undermining, social comparison, companionship, and social support.

Social support is the functional content of relationships The provision of social support is one of the most important functions of social relationships.

1. Emotional support involves the provision of empathy, love, trust, and caring. 2. Instrumental support involves the provision of tangible aid and services that directly assist a person in need. 3. Informational support is the provision of advice, suggestions, and information that a person can use to address problems. 4. Appraisal support involves the provision of information that is useful for self evaluation purposes—constructive feedback and affirmation.

not theories, They are concepts that describe the structure, processes, and functions of social relationships. Various sociological and social psychological theories (exchange theory, attachment theory) have been used to explain basic interpersonal processes and their association to health

Prospective epidemiological studies consistently find a relationship between a lack of social relationships and mortality Many studies have documented that intimate ties and the emotional support provided by them increase survival rates among people with severe diseases Social support mobilized to help a person cope with a stressor reduces the negative effects of the stressor on health

The association between social relationships and health does not follow a linear dose-response curve. Very low levels of social integration (that is, having no strong social ties) are most deleterious higher levels of social integration are less advantageous once a threshold level has been reached Having at least one strong intimate relationship is an important predictor of good health The influence of social network characteristics on social support, health behavior, and health status has not been thoroughly examined unlike the relationship between social support and health Studies show that reciprocity and intensity within a social network are somewhat consistently linked to positive mental health

few ties high-intensity relationships, high density, close geographical proximity -help us maintain our social identity and facilitate the exchange of affective support.

larger, more diffuse, composed of less intense ties -may be better at facilitating social outreach and exchanging new information

Observational studies cannot tell us whether we can promote good health by strengthening social networks and increasing the availability of social support. Intervention research is needed to identify the most potent causal agents and critical time periods for social network enhancement. In order to effectively enhance the health-protective functions of social networks we must know: who should provide what to whom (and when)?

Social support can be provided by many types of people: informal network: family, friends, coworkers formal helping networks: health care professionals Different networks provide differing amounts and types of support long-term assistance is most often provided by family members neighbors and friends are more likely to provide short-term aid In medical care settings, patients need emotional support from family and friends and informational support from health care professionals

More effective support is likely to stem from people who are socially similar to the support recipients and who have experienced similar stressors or situations These characteristics enhance the "empathic understanding" of the support provider the support given is then similar to the needs and values of the recipient. The person who desires support is more likely to overcome the stigma attached to needing help when the social network member is perceived to be empathic and understanding.

The perceptions of support (rather than the objective behaviors involved in the support) are most strongly linked to recipients' health and well-being Although the perceptions of support are correlated with objective behaviors, this correlation is modest it is necessary to identify factors that may influence whether behaviors are perceived as supportive Factors that influence perception of support: previous experiences of support with the helper the social context of the relationship role expectations between network members individual preferences for types and amounts of social support. notes.This is very important to consider. A person may be offering you a lot of info and empathy but if you don't associatie what theyre giving you as support youre not gonna associate is to a better health outcome. This is highly subjective. Doesn't matter what theyre giving you its how you ppercieve it. Its this perception that's going to effect your health outcome. If you have a person you don't know who well, if theyre offering you empathy, youre probably not going to view the action as very supportive to you. This is a very personal objective. It could be anything from prescribing you medicine to giving you empathy.

The types of social networks and social support that enhance well-being and health differ according to: Age Developmental stage of the support recipient People who are experiencing a major life stressor benefit from different types of support during the various stages of coping with the stressor someone newly diagnosed with a dire medical condition may benefit from a closely knit, dense social network that provides strong affective support. However, as individual makes life modifications to adapt to the illness, more diffuse networks that offer access to diverse informational support may be most helpful. notes.At what age is your developmental stage regarding your perceptions of social support.younger its more important to have high emotional support, later more information support.

1.Enhancing existing social network linkages 2. Developing new social network linkages 3. Enhancing networks through the use of indigenous natural helpers 4. Enhancing networks at the community level through participatory problem-solving processes. A fifth category is composed of interventions that use a combination of these types of interventions.

Social network interventions are most likely to be effective if developed and implemented within a framework that considers multiple levels of influence interventions that enhance individuals' motivation and skills for performing healthy behaviors should also enhance the health-promoting qualities of the social networks. An important direction for future research is to develop and evaluate social network interventions that include strategies across multiple units of practice individual, family, and community

carefully describing the intervention activities monitoring the effects of these activities on the amount and quality of social support both delivered and received assessing changes in knowledge, health behaviors, community capacity, or health status.